“This is public money and so it must be publicly accounted for.”
The words of Catherine Bearder, a Lib-Dem member of the European Parliament in a letter published in Monday’s Times in which she explained why she accounts for her expenses.
How much more so does this principle apply to the vast sums of public money which are handed to the EU?
Challenging Brussels is not a political matter when citizens seek financial accountability. To challenge Brussels is not to be anti-Europe, as supporters of the Union claim, but if challenging the EU is left to others then the challenge must become a political one.
By denying us an account of the use to which money is put the European Union is proving itself anti-taxpayer and presents those who contribute to its finances with a huge political challenge. The fault in this lies not with Europhobes and Eurosceptics but clearly with the EU itself.